Cowboy Chow Roanoke
New Cowboy Chow cooks up great grub down the street from sibling Twisted Root
In Star Telegram
By TERESA GUBBINS
Chef Jason Boso made a splash in Roanoke with burger joint Twisted Root, and he continues his colonization with Southwestern-themed Cowboy Chow, which opened in early October. It might seem risky to open two restaurants on the same street, but Boso has seen the formula work in Deep Ellum, where both restaurants began.
The two have a complementary relationship: Twisted Root attracts families, while Cowboy Chow’s bar scene is popular with motorcycle clubs on weekend afternoons.
At Cowboy Chow, brisket rules, from brisket tacos to brisket enchiladas to a brisket sloppy Joe. There’s also buffalo in tacos ($12), a buffalo hot dog ($9) and a chicken-fried steak ($13). Dishes sampled were excellent, the flavors amplified.
Cast-iron chicken potpie ($8) embodied the essence of the dish with extra-tender pieces of white-meat chicken in a velvety cream sauce. Accompanying vegetables — corn, peas, cubed carrots — retained a little pop that made them equal players, not just part of a mushy background. Presentation was nifty: The pie came in a cast-iron pot, topped with a cap of puff pastry that functioned like a biscuit. Crisp on the top, dense in the middle, it was the perfect amount of pastry.
Buffalo tacos ($12) came two to an order, with big, chunky shreds of buffalo meat, diced tomato, bell pepper, queso fresco and thick slices of avocado, wrapped in soft tortillas that we were delighted to learn were whole-wheat. Served in a neat steel dish, the tacos came with a side of well-seasoned wild rice that packed a welcome bit of heat.
Ranch “cigars” ($8) were like big fat taquitos but surprisingly light. You can get them filled with brisket or “pulled” strands of chicken. They came with house-made ranch dressing and, oddly, a side of mashed potatoes, which were excellent, with the red skins still on, plus bits of corn, scallions and peas.
Appetizers include Navajo fry bread ($4), like a big, flat doughnut, and just as delicious. A round of fried bread dough, it was propped up with a toothpick so that it looked like a sailboat. It came with ramekins of black-bean puree and honey; dipping it in the honey was like a make-your-own honey-glazed doughnut.
The fried green tomato lollipop ($1 each) was another fun starter, with a thick slice of green tomato, breaded and fried and served on a stick. Cowboy nachos ($4 small, $6 large) — house-made potato chips topped with queso fresco, pico and ranch dressing — seemed like a good shared starter but were too messy and rather on the stingy side.
Desserts were also disappointing. The peanut butter brownie with marshmallow s’mores ($4) was so unpleasantly dense and granular that a single portion shared between two went unfinished. A house-made chocolate chip cookie ($6), served hot in a baby iron skillet, turned out to be achingly sweet. Service was a challenge as well, with staffers and managers oblivious to customer needs and mistakes on the bill. Fortunately, basics such as silverware and napkins are right on the table so you don’t have to flag a server down.
The front of Cowboy Chow feels friendly, with a fire pit and a row of rocking chairs. Its rustic country decor, with weather-beaten wood and brick, bears a family resemblance to Twisted Root; you can tell they’re siblings.